“Whatever it is, I’m sure he’ll talk soon. Sounds like he’s reached the point where he can’t deal with it anymore or he wouldn’t have done this.”
“Then he should have just left on his own! He shouldn’t have taken Jessica with him when she was already scared.”
“I know, honey,” she soothed. “And when he comes home, you can talk it out with him.”
“What if he doesn’t come back?” I asked quietly. “What if he’s so mad he just stays out all night? Checks into a hotel or something.”
“He’ll be back. You already said he doesn’t have any of Jessica’s things with him. He’ll have to come home.”
Deanna was severely underestimating his stubbornness, not to mention I had no idea who he was at that moment. Under normal circumstances, she’d have been right. He’d have gone out and blown off some steam then come back to talk. But it was like he’d grown a new personality; one that made him irrational and a little scary. I wished I could rewind the whole week and gotten to the bottom of this sooner instead of letting it fester.
“How long am I supposed to wait before I completely freak out?” I asked, although there wasn’t much room left for panicking further. My voice had calmed but my insides were still vibrating from the frantic beat of my heart.
“Give him an hour. If he isn’t back by then, call me and we’ll figure something out. But try not to worry, Leah. He would never do anything to put Jessica at risk.”
He already has. But I didn’t say it out loud. I knew Deanna was as concerned as I was and only trying to placate me. What else could she say? What else could either of us do?
“Okay,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll talk to you soon.”
As I hung up the phone, I kicked off my shoes, something I hadn’t actually gotten to since I’d got home. Everything had happened so fast. I sank down onto the sofa and tucked my legs underneath me – my favourite position in my favourite seat. I glanced around the room, my eyes drifting over the pristine glass coffee table in the centre of the room that held a vase of fresh flowers. Flowers. There was something about that centrepiece that made me giggle inwardly, because I never thought I’d be a fresh flowers on the coffee table kind of girl. Of course, I never thought I’d be a living in LA with a famous soccer player kind of girl either. My background was simple, normal. Even after so long, I often took a sharp intake of breath as I realised how fortunate I was. That house was the kind of thing I’d seen in magazines, with celebrities showing off the luxury they lived in. It might have been Radleigh’s officially, but between the two of us, we’d turned it into a home and anyone looking in would have taken one glance at the enormous TV screen and plush furnishings and thought our life was perfect. And it had been for the most part. But suddenly the place felt huge. It was always a tad too big for the three of us, and it was sure as hell too big just for Radleigh, and without him and Jessica, I felt… small. Lost.
The sound of the buzzer snapped me out of my thoughts and I frowned. Who the hell was pressing the buzzer at this time of night? There was a list a mile long of friends who had the code for the front gate but none of them would have just dropped by so late without calling first, so who had got through the gates and managed to reach the front door? The buzzer sounded again and with a hammering heart, I stood, reminding myself the police were only a phone call away if I needed them. When I reached the front door, I pressed the button on the intercom and said, “Hello?”
“Erm, hi. Leah?”
The voice was female and unfamiliar, and my finger hovered over the panic button. Who the hell would be crazy enough to find a way onto my property at eleven and press the buzzer? An image of Taylor flashed into my head. God, I hadn’t thought about her in forever. But she was gone now, and crazy as the situation with Radleigh had made me, it was highly unlikely Taylor’s ghost was coming for me. And if she was, she wouldn’t have needed to press the damn buzzer; she could have just floated her spooky ass through the walls.
“Who is this?” I asked.
“Can you open the door?”
“How did you get in here?”
“I… I slipped through the gates after Radleigh left.”
So… the mystery woman had just been standing outside the door for thirty minutes? Or had she been scoping out the property? My palms began to sweat; who the hell was this?
“Okay, well, I don’t know or care who you are, but I’m calling the police if you don’t leave right now.”
“No, wait!” the woman shrieked. “Please. I need to talk to you.”
“And that would be great if I knew who you are. But since I don’t, I’m gonna need you to get the hell off my doorstep. This is your last warning.”
“You don’t know me,” she said quickly. “But I’m sure you know who I am. I’m Jen. Jen Winters.”
I swear for a second I blacked out. This had to be a joke. Jen? Radleigh’s Jen? No. Way.
“Leah, please. I don’t want to cause any trouble. I just want to talk to you.”
Now I knew who she was, I wanted her on my property even less. Christ, I’d have preferred a freaking burglar. That’s how bad her reputation was.
But suddenly, with alarming clarity, Radleigh’s mood made sense.
I shook my head. In spite of my concerns about what Radleigh had been doing lately, I knew there was no way he would have been gotten tangled up with her. No way he would have cheated on me with her. But he knew she was here. That was why he’d been so stressed. What did she want?
Although my brain screamed at me not to, my body moved almost mechanically towards the door. I made sure the chain was firmly in place before turning the locks and opening the door.
And there she was. Perfect Jen. I recognised her, because like every modern day girlfriend, I’d Googled her to find out what my man’s ex looked like, and there was no shortage of photos of Jen Winters online.